


Instructor's Dilemma

by JungleJayps



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Fluff, pharmercy is going to be the focus, pre-established zarya x mei
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-15
Updated: 2017-02-03
Packaged: 2018-08-15 04:08:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8042002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JungleJayps/pseuds/JungleJayps
Summary: Angela is a fresh-faced teacher. Fareeha is in her class





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The AU nobody asked for!

Students started to flow into the classroom, the murmuring echoing through the lecture hall. Angela could pick up some parts of the conversation from the unsuspecting students, venting their frustrations at how much in textbooks they had to pay, and how they already had homework assigned on the first day of classes. Angela didn’t register much, however, she was focused on making sure she got her first lecture right the first time around.

Headmaster Ana Amari had been very generous in giving her an opportunity to lecture at Overwatch University. She was very young compared to all the other professors, but Ana had seen her aptitude for instructing. Angela had managed to serve as a Teacher’s Assistant while simultaneously getting a double major in Education and Pre-Med. Ana had agreed to allow Angela to give lectures at the university, in return Angela would be receiving free tuition as she studied to receive her doctorate. There was no doubt she would be swamped with a massive workload, but Angela took pressure like that in stride. 

The stream of students began to slow down from the initial burst into the lecture hall. Thankfully, most students appeared to have arrived a good deal earlier than usual for their first day of the lecture. The room was beginning to fill up to capacity, students no longer able to avoid sitting down with a buffer seat on either side. Being a core common science course meant that it was a class required for a plethora of majors and academic pathways. Angela had no doubt that this room full to the brim would be at half capacity within a month. These types of weeder classes tended to have a high dropout rate and a fairly low attendance rate.

The murmur of the crowd was low and anticipatory. Angela looked to the doors to see a few stragglers coming in before the clock struck 2:00. The last person to enter in through the doorway gave Angela a little leap to her stomach. She wasn’t really just a person, Angela thought to herself. She was a woman.

Indeed she was, with a muscular frame, sturdy shoulders, and shining, smooth black hair, she seemed to be just Angela’s type. Plus, that smooth mocha skin called to Angela. Angela cursed herself when she realized she was already becoming attracted to a student and she hadn’t even began to give her first lecture yet. It was not until the stranger turned her head to face Angela did she realize how much trouble she was in.

_Oh._

_Oh no._

Fareeha Amari, spitting image of Headmaster Amari, donning the same tattoo on the opposite eye, strolled into class with the confidence (or cockiness) that Angela could definitely tell she got from her mother. Fareeha locked eyes with the suddenly flustered professor. She gave a quick glance up and down and then settled back onto Angela’s face, giving her a head nod and a small smirk as she moved to the steps to take her seat. She sat herself right in the middle of the second row, just about eye level with the professor.

The digital clock next to the projector changed to mark the start of a new hour, and Angela faced the class with a mix of anxiety and excitement.

“Welcome everyone. I do hope you all are here for Chemistry 123, otherwise known as Organic Chemistry, otherwise known as the reason you’ll be able to put down the library as your second place of residence. She turned to grab a dry-erase marker from the tray and began to write on the board. “My office hours are Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 10:00 am to 11:00 am, and here is my email in case you want to reach me in any way during the semester”, she turned to face the class again and her eyes shifted to Fareeha (this will be a bad habit), who seemed to be very interested in the last bit of information shared to the class.

The rest of her lecture went without a hitch. She was able to cruise through the boring syllabus content and dive straight into the exciting world of OChem, or at least that’s what she thought.

As soon as the lecture end time was reached, Angela concluded her final thoughts before sending the students off. Streams of people cruised down the aisle, trying to get out the doors before there was an inevitable blockup from people also trying to get inside the same lecture hall. Angela was packing up her laptop into her small backpack when she saw someone approaching her out of the corner of her eye.

“Excuse me? Professor?”

Angela turned to the student approaching her and she immediately began to straighten her back. “Ah, yes, what can I do for you…?”

Fareeha gave the first instance of hesitation Angela could see, her mouth slightly opened trying to get started asking something that was clearly bothering her.

“So.. last semester I had taken this class, but I sort-of dropped out halfway through. It’s a required class for my major, so I gotta take it again, but I’m extremely worried I’m not going to get through it, like last semester.” She started shifting her feet over one another, “And, I was wondering –”

“If you could get a little extra help?” Angela cut her off before she even needed to ask. “Ja, I can definitely help you if you ever have trouble understanding a concept or problem”, Angela gave a reassuring smile, “And it’s nothing to be ashamed about, organic chemistry is an extremely difficult class, but the fact that you already want to improve is a good sign”, Fareeha was looking at her feet, cheeks slightly flushed, but the anxious face was no longer present. “It might get a little tight, but I think I can squeeze you in the hour leading up to my office hours, just email me before hand if you are thinking of stopping by.”

Fareeha quickly looked up excitedly and could hardly fight down the smile growing on her face.

“Wow, you don’t know how much that would mean to me. Thank you so much!” Fareeha felt the sudden urge to hug the woman in front of her, but she decided it would be best not to. “I’m Fareeha by the way… but I’m pretty sure you already knew that”, she smirked as she lightly tapped the tattoo etched onto her eye. Angela gave her a “guilty as charged” look and shrugged her shoulders. “I will definitely take use of your offer. Thank you again, Professor Ziegler.”

“Oh please, Fareeha. I don’t want to feel like I’m 50 with tenure just yet. You can just call me Angela. I mean, I’m only 25. Though you know, I could probably find a smoking pipe and an elbow-patched suit jacket and wear that to class from now on.”

They both giggled, but were distracted by new students flowing in and entering the classroom.

“I guess we gotta get out of here”

Fareeha cocked an eyebrow, before replying “Yeah, I gotta head to my Differential Equations class, I have no idea why I picked that class section when it’s 10 minutes after this one.” She turned to leave, before stopping and facing Angela one last time, “I really appreciate it, _Angela_ , see you around.”

Angela found it very hard not to stare at the Egyptian’s tail end as she sauntered towards and out the door. She wondered whether she accepted Fareeha’s request as a way of repaying her mother, or the fact that Angela found the younger student incredibly gorgeous.

_What have I gotten myself into._


	2. Chapter 2

Fareeha was carrying her lunch through the mess of students mulling over where they would be eating for the afternoon. She had decided to grab a burrito from the brand new Mexican cuisine vendor. It had been awhile since Fareeha was able to satiate her secret desire for spicy food. When the employee had asked how much hot sauce she wanted on her burrito, she told him to just pour and she’d tell him when to stop. He poured the bottle for a very uncomfortable amount of time, looking hesitantly up at Fareeha every few seconds, wondering when the madness would end.

After getting several bumps to the shoulder and accidental elbows to the ribcage, Fareeha eventually escaped from the mass of students, and started looking for the friends she had come with.

A tuft of neon-pink hair sitting high above the rest of the sea of heads gave Fareeha a pretty good indication of where to go. Zarya was sitting with Mei-Ling Zhou to her right, Jesse McCree on the other side of the table.

She sat down at the table to the booming laughter of Zarya, who seemed to be laughing at an unfortunate mishap of Mei’s when she was working in one of her chemistry labs.

“I’ve never heard of someone actually having to use the chemical-emergency shower before”, Zarya spoke through bouts of laughter.

“It was so humiliating”, Mei said, face in palms, “and there’s so much water stored in that thing! I really wished I had worn a sweatshirt or something, because all my clothes were clinging straight to my body.” At the thought of that, Zarya seemed to quiet down, a shade of pink painted on her cheeks. McCree waved subtle eyebrows at her. “I’m just glad that there were some towels in the lab I could dry off with.” Mei moved to deflect the conversation onto another topic.

“So, Fareeha, how was your organic chem class? I heard there was a brand new professor teaching it this semester.”

Fareeha took a second to answer, her mind mentally tripping when Mei mentioned her new professor. “Well, I remember the stuff we’ve done so far from the first time I took the class. So hopefully for a week or so it’ll be nice to just have it all refreshed in my memory. After that, though, it’s going to be a bit more difficult. But… it’s funny that you mention the new professor” Fareeha paused again, Mei raised her eyebrows expectantly, “I was speaking to her after class, and apparently she’s only twenty-six years old!” The trio seemed to be taken aback.

“Just within the age range then, eh?” Jesse cracked at Fareeha. McCree braced for the inevitable elbow to the shoulder from Fareeha, but none came. Rather, her cheeks were scarlet, and she was looking down as if her shoes were suddenly extremely interesting. McCree suddenly grew a very wicked grin, and Mei stamped excitedly on the ground, hands clapping together.

“So.. anyways…” Fareeha barely squeaked out. 

“Oh no you don’t,” Mei interrupted, eager for the juicy details, “you can’t just leave us hanging like this!”

Fareeha brought her head up a little, but not enough to meet eyes with her friends. “Oh come on, you guys know I don’t talk about stuff like this.”

“Yeah, that’s why we want to know all about her!” McCree teased.

“Ugh, fine fine,” she tried to keep things short and to the point, so as not to start spilling the full extent of her attraction, “she is extremely gorgeous, with lovely blonde hair. She really is just breathtaking. She always seems to be smiling too.”

_Maybe she just smiled when she looked at you, she thought to herself_. How she wished that was the case. She knew it was too good to be true, though.

Fareeha suddenly caught herself in thought, hopefully not being too obvious to the others, “but most of all, she seems like a genuinely kind person. I mean, after I told her about my retaking the class, she offered to give me one on one practice sessions!” McCree nearly spit out his coffee, and both Mei and Aleks looked to each other before grinning widely at Fareeha. Just now realizing their interpretations of the statement, Fareeha felt her skin flare up once again. “No, no! That’s not what I meant! She just wanted to help me out if I ever had trouble with the class.”

“Ah, yes. She’ll probably want to teach you about all the types of organic compounds” Zarya emphasized the last syllable of the word, earning snickers from the other two.

Fareeha propped her arms back onto the table, resting her head in her hands, and sighing in frustration. “Why did she have to be a professor? Why couldn’t she have been a student? She’s just so -” Fareeha let her words trailed off as she looked into the distance, through the gap between Aleks and Mei. Her eyes had caught Angela walking through the doors into the dining area, looking at the different shops and vendors trying to figure out what she was going to eat. Fareeha’s lips curled up into a small smile. The three were looking at Fareeha inquisitively, wondering why she stopped mid-sentence.

Their questions were not unanswered for long.

Angela glided through the maze of students, eyes darting around for an optimal path, before her gaze happened to come across Fareeha’s. Angela locked eyes with the Egyptian, gave a wide smile, flashed her brilliant blue eyes, and threw Fareeha a wave.

Fareeha, now thoroughly embarrassed that she had just been caught staring at the professor, meekly raised her hand into a wave, returning the smile, unable to hide the growing redness on her face.

Zarya and Mei quickly turned around, scanning the crowd until they spotted one who stood out from everyone else. It was almost as if a golden aura eminatted from Angela, her golden hair seemingly amplifying the effect. She was in front of the Mexican grill Fareeha had bought her lunch from, brows furrowed in concentration as she mulled over her choices for lunch. Mei caught her gaze lingering a bit too long, and she shook herself out of the trance that had apparently ensnared Zarya and Fareeha. She giggled a little as she turned back to Fareeha, “looks like you have good taste, Fareeha.” Aleks turned back to Fareeha and Mei, “Da, and you would know, wouldn’t you?” she cracked a grin and gave Mei a small nudge. Mei rolled her eyes and giggled, lightly slapping Aleks on the bicep.

“So when are you going to put the moves on her, Far?” McCree nudged Fareeha with his elbow.

_If only it was that simple._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good news, everyone! I finally broke through my bad habit to keep things as a one-off piece. I guess now that I've made a part 2 I'm sort of obligated to write more. 
> 
> Check out my tumblr, which is pretty much the same thing as my AO3 except with way more dank memes  
> junglejayps.tumblr.com


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, it’s finally here! Sorry it took so long, university’s kicking my ass, and me rewriting this chapter a few times probably didn’t help.

Fareeha had to be quick. There was no telling what might happen if she didn’t get back in time. She looked around left and right, let out a anticipatory sigh, and cast off.

When she returned from the library bathroom, she let out a thankful sigh when it seemed as if all her belongings were just where she left them. There had been a recent bought of thefts of personal computers and textbooks, all left out unattended when their owners had been gone for mere minutes. However, Fareeha, who studied for hours at a time alone, and unwilling to potentially surrender up her luxurious booth, was willing to take the risk.

She scanned the booth as she approached closer and closer.

_Tablet, check._

_Textbooks, check._

_Backpack, check._

_Intimidatingly tall Russian -_

_Wait, what?_

Aleks was sitting down inside the booth, trying to sweep her hair back into its usual style, however the day’s humidity was making it a difficult task. When she saw Fareeha approaching, confused, she gave a look of mock irritation, a small smirk giving away the falsity.

“You have been studying for six hours already, yes? I did not see you at lunch today.”

Fareeha rubbed the back of her neck, “More or less. I really don’t want to screw my Orgo class up the second time around. Hence all the time in the library.”

Zarya raised an eyebrow at the mention of the chemistry class, “I thought that is why you were going to start seeing your professor, so you wouldn’t have to kill yourself studying outside of class”, Zarya waited a moment for a reaction from Fareeha. Seeing no visible reaction, she started to grow a wicked smirk, “unless, that is, you were not planning on doing much studying in your little ‘sessions’.

Fareeha let out an involuntary squeak, her cheeks immediately reddening as she tried to look anywhere but the knowing-face of Aleks. She really knew how to endlessly tease and frustrate her.

“Either way,” Aleks continued, sparing Fareeha the need to come up with a response, “you need to take break. We lift today. Meet me at gym in one hour.”

Before Fareeha even had time to argue about how much homework she had, and how it all needed to get done by tonight, Aleks had removed herself from the booth and sauntered off to the door.

_Well, I guess that’s that._

–

Days like this would drive any normal person to the brink of madness. The sweltering heat, coupled with the stickiness of the air surrounding everyone and everything, could suck the life out of even the most weathered should they stay out too long. The only saving grace for Angela was the clouds that shielded her from the scorching rays above. It was times like this Angela felt she should just pack up immediately and move back home to Zürich.

A sudden gust of wind blew a wall of humid air into the face of the Swiss. It had been a fool’s hope to hope for a refreshing breeze. With the gust, though, the clouds above parted, casting a blinding light upon her.

_There is no god._

What seemed to her like an hour was in reality only five minutes. The walk from her lecture hall to the university gym was quite a short one, but in this heat it felt like every second dragged on for an eternity. As she walked through the double doors, she was greeted by the chilling sensation of a properly air-conditioned building. Angela was almost brought to the point of tears, wanting to get down on her knees and revel in the long-forgotten feeling of cool bliss.

She flashed her university ID card, making her way through the corridors and down a set of staircases to reach the exercise equipment she was looking for. The weather was much to extreme recently for Angela to go on her daily runs during her two hour break between lectures. So, instead of bumming around inside her office, indulging herself in sweets (which she very much so wanted to do), she decided for once be an adult and use the on-campus gym’s treadmills. They didn’t offer as much of a workout as the real thing, but she felt the proper way to compensate was to increase the incline. As she entered one of the many training spaces, she realized she nearly had the entire place to herself. There were only 2 other people running on the treadmills, but fortunately for Angela, the treadmill with the fan in the back corner of the room was vacant.

Before give the treadmill a start, she quickly stretched her hamstrings and quads. The walk over to the gym gave her a nice window to warm up, and now she was able to flex her body every which way. When she was finished, she hit the large green button in the center of the interface. While the machine was still winding up, pacing itself at a leisurely 1.5 mph, she flipped the treadmill’s small television channel to something different from one of the many sports channels.

After a good half hour, her muscles were beginning to ache, but it wasn’t to the point where Angela had to call it quits. She did, however feel the need to turn up the fan to its highest setting. She didn’t feel nearly as much pain when she had such a nice breeze against her skin. The heat radiating from her skin was in perfect equilibrium with the cooling effect. The equilibrium shifted to warmth when she saw Fareeha walking beside a tall woman with neon pink hair towards the strength training area in front of her.

_Sheisse, sheisse._

Angela leaned forward so her head was even with monitor, creating a shield so they wouldn’t notice her presence, but the duo placed themselves down right within viewing distance of her. They set down their towels and water bottles, and began to stretch their muscles. Fareeha decided she would warm up her upper body first, and in turn shed the sweatshirt covering her to reveal a loose tank top, exposing her biceps and the side of her midsection as well. Angela had to pinch herself at the sight, finding it difficult to remove her sights from the woman before her. She motioned to slow down the speed of the treadmill. She told herself it wasn’t to make it easier to concentrate on Fareeha’s body. Trying to take her concentration off of Fareeha, she began to look at her counterpart. She found the larger woman’s physique quite impressive, but there was just something about the Egyptian that made her heart melt. Her eyes darted back to the Egyptian.

The two began to run through the routines they had been carrying out for months now. Angela felt like they were putting on a show for her, even though they were not aware of her presence. The final straw for Angela was when Fareeha moved towards the pull-up station, and formed into a wide stance. As she lifted herself up and slowly back down, Angela marveled at the muscles in her shoulders and bicep, tensing and easing with the rhythm of Fareeha’s workout. Beads of sweat were trailing down her arms, small droplets falling off every so often.

Angela could take no more visual teasing, her only course of action was running straight to the showers.

Once the cool, calming water was rushing over her skin, she returned to her normal, unfrenzied state of mind. With it brought feelings of guilt and shame. She had completely lost mental control when she was watching Fareeha’s drills. She shouldn’t even be entertaining these thoughts, no teacher should fraternize with their students. _But she isn’t even that much younger than you._ She was right, too. She vaguely remembered a conversation with Ana Amari about no longer needing to worry about having to bail Fareeha out of jail for underage drinking.

She turned off the shower and began toweling herself off. She was feeling extremely mixed about this entire situation. To even think about dating a student as a professor was unheard of, but she had never felt so physically attracted to someone before.

_Offering those little study sessions is going to prove to be a mistake, I just know it._

She wrapped her towel about her midsection, and let her damp, messy hair cling to her back and shoulders. She lifted her hand up to her face to check on her nails, scowling a little at the pruny fingers she found herself bearing. _At least I don’t –_ “Ooh”, Angela let out a mousy squeak as she turned the corner, finding herself face to face with a very sweaty, very nude Fareeha Amari, towel slung over her shoulder haphazardly.

Fareeha immediately reeled back in embarrassment and brought the towel across her midriff. She practically lived at the gym, and thus was quite comfortable with nudity around the locker room. She hardly flinched when Zarya would strip down in front of her, and in return she hardly hesitated when it was her turn.

But right now, around Angela, she felt raw and exposed. She felt bashful, her ability to think of something to say was shrinking with every moment. Her face became hot like the surface of Mercury, with Angela’s gaze providing the rays of warmth that heated the surface.

Angela tried to make it look like she wasn’t trying to mentally lift the towel back out of Fareeha’s grasp, but what she had just witnessed seconds prior made it quite difficult to not give in to the temptation. Fareeha had a body that seemed to be sculpted from the very hands of Michelangelo. The muscles she had seen tense and release in the distance no more than a half hour ago were just mere feet in front of her eyes, and she eyed over every part of the Egyptian’s body in the seconds she had been given. Fareeha’s wordless stutters snapped Angela out of her musings.

Angela found it quite endearing how the confident woman she had seen flashing sly smirk after smirk during lecture was now barely capable of making any form of sentence, let alone a witty remark. She marveled at how quickly Fareeha lost her facade of the smooth, confident woman she initially appeared to be. Angela decided to have mercy on her.

“Well, Fareeha this is an unexpected surprise”, _not totally, though. I did just get a back stage pass to the gun show earlier._

Fareeha managed to croak out a simple “yes” before once again averting her eyes from the alluring figure in front of her.

“I hope this doesn’t make this awkward between us. I was looking forward to being able to help you out when you needed it,” Angela walked up to Fareeha and put her hand on her shoulder, “the offer still remains, you know”, Angela finished with a wink.

_Maybe mercy was not the correct term._

Fareeha nodded slowly, her mind still scrambling from what just transpired. From the moment Angela rounded the corner she was breathless, her mind unable to comprehend the woman that stood before her. Angela’s golden mane seemed playfully messy, trailing down her back, with some rogue strands descending down the opposite side, leading Fareeha’s eyes along the curvature of Angela’s towel-cloaked body. The wrap ended just low enough to give Fareeha a tantalizing view of the shapely thighs before her. And was she flirting with her just then?

Angela sauntered past a wide-eyed Fareeha, and as she moved further away, she made sure to put a bit more swing into her step, to further torment her prey.

Angela could help but smirk to herself. _This will make for an interesting week._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I sort-of have this headcanon where Fareeha is cocky and confident around everybody, but turns really shy and submissive when she’s in an intimate situation. 
> 
> Also, I kinda hated writing this chapter. Probably because it was all written on nights past 2am, and the following mornings I would open up my drive to find the shit I wrote the previous night.
> 
> If you want to check out a tumblr, just hit the link below. It's basically my AO3, but with more dank memes.
> 
> junglejayps.tumblr.com


	4. Coffee and a Muffin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally out! If you're wondering why this is being updated so late (a bit over a month eh), it's because I switched to the Macbook Wheel as my daily driver.
> 
> Memes aside though, this chapter's pretty long. Hope this makes up for it, everyone.

The projector screen lowered itself slowly along the cinder-blocks, making a low humming sound as it unfurled. Students were finding their ways to their seats, and Angela was re-organizing her lecture notes after she had the misfortune of dropping her un-clasped briefcase on her way out of the nearby coffee shop. She usually did not need to resort to consulting her notes amidst a lecture, her deep passion and knowledge of the subject allowed her to speak about the topic with great ease. However, they came especially in handy when she became flustered, and that seemed to be happening more and more often when she would occasionally make eye contact with the Egyptian woman that would sit center stage.

_Okay, maybe not occasionally._

She shuffled through the papers to make sure they were in the correct order, periodically glancing upwards, hoping to catch the eye of the woman who had ensnared her heart. She really knew she should not be looking so forward to seeing Fareeha every lecture, but Angela could not help herself. _Especially_ after their most recent encounter ended with Angela get quite the eyeful at what Fareeha hid underneath her daily clothing. 

But when the clock crawled around to signal the start of lecture, there appeared to be no Fareeha in sight. Angela began to replay the scene in the locker room. _Did I scare her off? I didn’t think I came on too strong. Maybe she was just embarrassed?_

She concluded that the latter was the most probable cause. Finding yourself stark naked in front of a professor could prove mortifying, and doubly so when they are donning naught but a towel to cover themselves. She let out a small chuckle at the thought, and pondered what her reaction would be had the tables been flipped.

Without the distraction of a certain someone, her lecture passed by quickly, Though, she couldn’t help but miss Fareeha’s presence, even though it usually resulted in her tripping over her words at least once. The rest of the day was filled with a mix of classes she was at the head of, and some where she was in the audience. When Angela finally returned to her apartment, nightfall was upon her. She threw her things to the ground and collapsed into her desk chair.

The blue-white light of Angela’s laptop flooded the room, making her cringe at the sudden outburst of light into her night adjusted eyes. She turned down the brightness before opening up her email, expecting to find the usual heap of students begging for extra credit, or arguing why they have an extension to a past-due assignment. She kept scrolling through the swaths of emails, occasionally clicking on ones sent from University staff, but those were far and few between. Her chin found her open palm upright on the desk, and her eyes began to droop, until she stumbled upon an address that made her heart give a small jump. 

_From: f.amari1@overwatch.edu_  
_Subject: Office Hours_  
_Sent Today, 5:35 p.m._

She immediately moved the cursor to open up the email. Her eyes darted line to line reading the message.

_Hello, ___

_In case you didn’t recognize the name from the email, this is Fareeha._

_I don’t know if you noticed or not, but I did not attend lecture earlier today. I try not to make a habit of doing that, but sometimes I just need a little time to cool down and relax. Anyways, I don’t know if it would still be possible to come in tomorrow before office hours like you said? I know you said the offer still stood a few days ago but I just wanted to make sure. I kind of have the feeling I’ll be kicking myself if I don’t learn the stuff I missed._

_Thank you again, __  
_Fareeha__

Angela leaned back into her chair and brought her hands together behind her head, allowing her to lean back into her makeshift headrest. She found it both endearing and frustrating that she was so hesitant to take her up on the offer.

_And taking some time to cool down? You could say that again._

She gave herself a small chuckle, pushing away any of the scandalous thoughts beginning to arise from that encounter in the showers. Thoughts that would not go away if she gave allowed them to take root in her mind. She gave a small crack to her knuckles before leaning forward and preparing her response.

_Hi, Fareeha._

_Of course it’s okay to stop by! I look forward to seeing you then._  
_And I totally understand, I think we could all use some time off now and then. ___

_\- Angela_

She couldn’t help the small bout of giddiness brought upon her. Toes tapping, hands coming together in quick little claps, Angela couldn’t help but blush when she realized how excited she was to be able to talk to Fareeha alone for an hour. 

_I should probably be chastising myself for being ‘unprofessional’ or something like that. A few weeks into my first teaching job and I’m already feeling like I’m back in highschool, over a woman who I barely have talked to no less? For goodness sake, my version of flirting is staring at someone and secretly hoping they have the guts to approach me… which now that I think about it, is exactly what happened._

Unable to sit still, she lifted herself up from the chair and walked over to the light switch, flicking it on. Angela winced once again by the increased magnitude of brightness, and shielded her eyes to give them time to adjust. She fumbled her way to her closet, and opened up the sliding door to pick tomorrow's outfit. 

She was suddenly very conscious of the clothing she was picking out. Shirts and blouses would come off the rack and be shuffled back in with a “tsk”. She was putting much more thought into this than she usually would have, and Angela took notice of it. She endlessly cycled through combinations, frustration beginning to show on her expressions. 

_How to make it clear that I’m interested without shouting to the entire world my intentions?_

After roughly a half hour of getting nowhere in her search for a proper outfit, she collapsed down onto her bed and stuffed her face into her pillow. Sweet bliss enveloped her as she formed into the memory foam beneath. The muscles in her body began to relax, and Angela began to feel herself become one with the bed. 

_I’ll find something in the morning._

Trying to find a position slightly more comfortable, she shifted onto her side, but the result was far less pleasant than she had hoped.

_Ah scheisse, the lights._

She begrudgingly left her domain of comfort to flick the light switch off, groaning and complaining the entire way there. 

Her return to her resting place was far less graceful than the first time, which was saying something. She threw herself into comforter, not bothering to even wrap herself up. Her thoughts raced between all the lectures and classes scheduled the next day. Her list seemed to be getting longer with each week.

_Maybe I can add Fareeha to the To-Do list._ Angela chuckled softly, too tired to fight the impure thoughts that were beginning to seep into her sleep-addled mind. Her mind peacefully succumbed to thoughts of a certain Egyptian woman.

The way she woke up was much worse than the way she fell asleep.

A loud siren was blaring, echoing through the room and into Angela’s ears. She shot up with a panic, her eyes frantically searching around her in a frenzy. 

She instantly knew when she heard that specific alarm she was late. She threw herself off the bed, making her way towards the source of the increasingly loud air-raid siren. When she finally reached her phone, she looked at the time and her face fell. 

_8:30 AM_

Her first meeting with Fareeha was in a half hour and she had not showered, eaten, or even gotten dressed. 

“Scheisse, scheisse, scheisse. Schwanzlutscher!” She shouted in an emotional mix of anger, panic, and exhaustion.

Angela was not a happy camper until she drank her morning cup (or three) of coffee, and that was pushed to the backburner until she finished everything else. 

She hurriedly jumped into the shower, setting it shockingly cold so she didn’t take her time like she usually did. Most mornings she strove to wake up early so she could spend time enjoying her favorite time of the day. She liked being able to put on her plush robe and walk downstairs to drink from the pot of freshly brewed coffee she had started before her steaming hot shower. After that she would normally bring up the local morning news, and revel in the quiet and the calm. 

That was not this morning. 

She spent a record amount of time in the shower. She came out feeling like she should be able to put the shower manufacturers on trial for crimes against humanity for allowing such a setting to exist on their products. Who in their right mind would even consider taking a cold shower out of their own free will? 

She toweled off as fast as she could, and stepped out into her bedroom. The spots she missed slowly dripped water down onto her carpet. She cursed as she made the realization that in the last 5 minutes 15 minutes had past. Time was slipping through her fingers, and she resigned herself to grabbing the first outfit that didn’t make her flinch in horror. 

Angela made her way downstairs and walked into the kitchen. As she rounded the corner she let out another curse as she realized that she had not started the coffee pot before her shower. Not wanting to set herself even more behind than she already was, she decided to bite through the pain and go without it. 

That was the worst decision she’d make today.

As she reached her car, she saw herself in the reflection. Her hair was a mess and her eyes had deep bags underneath, but that was not what her attention was drawn to. Rather, her eyes were pulled down to the unmistakably unprofessional amount of cleavage she was displaying with her blouse. 

“Hueresohn!” Angela let out in an exasperated gasp. She glanced down at her phone, which read 8:50 AM. No time to go back in and change. She would just have to wear her sweatshirt that she kept in the car for emergencies, emergencies like a broken down car in the middle of winter, not because she was wearing a risque blouse. The downside was the season’s heat. Hopefully maintenance had fixed the air conditioning in her building, or else it was going to prove quite the shitty day.

Angela climbed into the front seat of her car and prayed to whatever god would listen that traffic would not be terrible.

Fareeha meticulously reviewed herself in the mirror. She had made sure to go to bed much earlier than usual the previous night so she wouldn’t be rushed when she awoke. Before taking her shower, she dressed herself in exercise clothes and went for a run about campus to the backdrop of daybreak. She had expected some anxiousness and jitters, and looked to sweat out some of the nervous energy.

She returned exhausted, too tired at the time to begin worrying again.  
But after her time in the shower, with a mind free to wander, she was beginning to have the anxiousness return. With a fluttering in her stomach, she finish putting the set of beads in her hair, and walked to her bed where she had set out her outfit. 

She reached out and grabbed her phone, clicking the button on the side to display messages that she had missed while she was in the shower. She popped an eyebrow up when she saw she had something waiting in her inbox, from Zarya no less. It was unusual to see that the Russian was among the living before noon. She swiped to open the message and her lips crept up into a smile.

_Aleks: Remember what I said, I better not hear excuses at lunch. Maybe flash her again?_

 **Notes for the Chapter:**

> In all seriousness though, I'm sorry that this took so long to get out! I haven't forgotten about this story, and I'll continue to update it, but things have gotten way to busy, with midterms and coursework taking top priority. The way I write, I need to set aside hours out of one day to get most of it done, because if I do it in small chunks, I'll get fed up or stuck at one part and grow irritated trying to fix or continue on from there. So, basically, I try to write as much of a story as I can in a small amount of time, and save editing for the next day. Needless to say, I don't really have much time to devote to doing things like that during the semester, so updates will probably continue to be a bit slower, but I'm not going to dick everyone around and wait another month for chapter 5. 
> 
> If you want to guilt me into finishing that next chapter quicker (this actually will work 95% of the time), you can pester me at my tumblr at junglejayps.tumblr.com. Send me a dank meme, or shoot me a message to play some OW.


	5. Chapter 4.5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit guys, I just looked back at chapter 4 and realized it got cut off like a third of the way through. Some editing job I did! I think I deleted some of it when I was trying to format the HTML (this will be the death of me I swear)
> 
> Since so much was left out, I figured I'd post the rest as a new chapter because I'm not sure how many people would go back to read chapter 4 when I inevitably post chapter 5.
> 
> This is super embarrassing, good lord.
> 
> So basically, read chapter 4 before this, then just continue like nothing happened :)

It was touching that Zarya had woken up early just to give Fareeha a confidence boost, although she was now regretting telling her friends of the events that had transpired in the locker room after Aleks had left the gym. She had been mercilessly tormented by Jesse and Aleks, who never ceased an opportunity to make Fareeha stammer and stutter. Mei had tried to reign the duo in, but she always eventually caved and giggled along with them. However, when it came down to it, Aleks cared for Fareeha and was there for her when Fareeha felt her confidence dropping.

The previous night, Fareeha had spoken with Aleks about the plans she had made for today, and her apprehensions leading up to it. She wasn’t sure if things could even progress between her and Angela, and she was beginning to regret asking in the first place. She didn’t really need help catching up on missed lecture material, she had read the textbooks and done the exercises. She really just wanted an excuse to talk to Angela, even more so if they could do it alone. She wanted to know who she was, what she loved doing in her free time, what television shows she liked to binge watch, what her favourite comfort food was. All knowledge that is not included in the usual teacher-student relationship. It was Zarya who had managed to help keep some hope for Fareeha alive.

“You said she was 25, yes?” Zarya asked while leaning back into the couch.

“Yeah” Fareeha replied glumly.

“Then I do not see problem.” Aleks said blankly, clearly out of tactics to help lift Fareeha’s spirits about the entire situation. She continued, “You are worried about fitting that ‘50 year old college professor dating 18 year old freshman’ stereotype, when in reality you are barely 5 years apart. I mean you turn 21 in a month, no? If you have the legal right to get plastered you have the legal right to pick who you would like to be intimate with, and that goes for her as well.”

Fareeha looked up to her friend’s determined but compassionate expression, and she felt herself starting to match it.

“Thanks, Aleks, I think I needed a kick in the butt”

Aleks devilishly smirked, “Hopefully next time it will be Ms. Ziegler giving said kick, yes?” She waggled her eyebrows. “If you’re into that sort of thing is all.”

Fareeha rolled her eyes and playfully slapped Zarya’s knees, before going to grab a snack from the small pantry to conceal her blush from Aleks. Just the right amount of teasing and genuine help, as per usual when it came to Aleksandra.

She finished putting on her clothing and read the screen on her phone to see it flash a bright ‘8:20’ back at her. Time seemed to be going agonizingly slow for her. She was practically ready to walk out the door and yet she had a chunk of time before she was planning to meet Angela in her office.

Fareeha figured she might as well head out to the local cafe to pass the time. She didn’t want to be that guy and be waiting outside the Angela’s office until 9:00 sharp. She imagined Angela was already hard at work in her office, typing away on a research paper, and she didn’t want to bother Angela with her presence until she was specifically allowed to.

Meanwhile Angela was yelling at the driver in front of her who seemed to make it their mission to make sure they drive at the exact same speed as the semi-truck next to them.

Fareeha entered the shop and was greeted by a wonderful scent, composed of freshly brewed coffee and flaky pastries that seemed to be no more that minutes out of the oven. She looked around, recognizing many of the customers as professors for the university. She briefly wondered if Angela ever frequented this cafe before her morning lectures.

As she came up the register to order her breakfast, the woman behind the counter perked up and already began to grab a cup from the stack next to her.

“The usual, Fareeha?”

Fareeha thought for a moment, “Yeah, but I also wanted to grab something else as well.” Fareeha wondered what type of drink Angela would buy. “Well, I guess I’ll just have another extra large coffee, and uhh… I think I’ll get a blueberry muffin as well.”

“Coming right up, love!” The short messy hair bounced along as she bent down to pick out a freshly baked muffin and place it in a small paper bag.

“Any cream or sugar, in the other one, Fareeha?” The woman asked over her shoulder, as she placed a lid atop the first cup.

Fareeha thought for a moment, she really didn’t have any idea what Angela would like.

“To be honest, Lena, I have no clue. I think I’ll just grab a handful of both so she can decide when she gets it.”

Fareeha exited the cafe, bag in hand and coffee cups placed carefully in the tray. The decision to buy breakfast for Angela was a bit of an impulse, but she still wanted to show her appreciation, even if was just a coffee and muffin. She walked across campus feeling the heat of the morning sun already begin its cycle, in a few hours time it would become unbearable to most.

She arrived in the Chemistry building and made her way up to Angela’s office, her heart beating quicker and quicker with each step closer.

Fareeha arrived at the Angela’s office and snuck a glance inside, but to her dismay she saw the lights off and nobody inside. She set down her things on the ground and sat on the floor. She still was a few minutes early, after all. To pass the time she pulled out her phone and browsed the internet, shuffling through social media and news sites.

After a few minutes past 9, she began to glance about the hallway anxiously. She wondered if Angela had just forgotten about it, the thought made Fareeha slink a little further down the wall she was leaning on. If she was so far back in the professor’s mind then there was probably no chance anything would happen between them.

As the clock rolled past 9:20, she resigned herself to the fact that she had put way too much thought into trying to get ready for today. Too much effort wasted on something that was nothing but a dream in the first place.

She shimmied her way back up the wall, before leaning down and picking up the things she had set down. As she turned to walk back down from where she came from, her head drooping from her shoulders, she heard a sudden stomping coming closer and closer from behind.

“Fareeha!”, a high pitched voice gasped, “Wait!”

Fareeha swiveled around on her foot to see an exasperated Angela running down the hallway towards her, briefcase clutched to her chest and papers nearly overflowing from the top.

Angela ran all the way until she was feet from Fareeha, to which she dropped her satchel and bent over, supporting herself up on her knees, out of breath. “…Sorry…” gasp, “…I’m…” another gasp, “…late.”

Fareeha couldn’t help but smile at Angela, and any lingering doubt that had built up was melted away.

“Had a rough morning, then?”

Angela looked back up to Fareeha, “Oh my god you have no idea”, she whipped out her keychain and unlocked the door, holding it open for Fareeha, “I woke up late, traffic was a mess, and I didn’t even have time to get a proper shirt on.”

Fareeha noted the sweatshirt, something that was not commonplace for a professor’s attire, “Well, hopefully this can make up for it”, Fareeha held up the tray and paper bag towards Angela.

Angela clapped in place, an expression of childlike joy growing on Angela. She closed in on Fareeha and took the coffee in one and the bag in the other. “Oh my, thank you Fareeha! You have no idea how much I needed this right now.”

Crumbs were flying onto the desk and its surroundings as Angela began to tear into the muffin Fareeha purchased for her. She had nearly inhaled the entire thing before Fareeha piped up, “I also wasn’t sure what you took in your coffee, so I just grabbed you a bunch of sugar and creamer.

Fareeha jammed her hand into her pocket and pulled out the additives, placing them before Angela. She reached for the pile and picked up a handful, her cheeks full of the last bit of breakfast food. She tore bags of sugar and lids off the cups to pour into the coffee. Fareeha cocked her eyebrow at the quite excessive amount of both she seemed to be adding.

“How many of those do you take in your coffee?” Fareeha asked with a chuckle and genuine surprise.

Angela looked up sheepishly, “I really don’t like the bitterness,” she looked back down to continue pouring them in, “but I like 4 creams 5 sugars, for future reference.” Angela quickly looked back up, a tint of red to her cheeks, “I mean, that is… if you want to keep on…” Angela looked back down with embarrassment, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to imply anything.”

Fareeha couldn’t help but mentally smile at Angela’s fumbling, “No that is fine, it’s useful to know. If you care at all, I take my coffee black.”

Angela nearly spat the small amount of liquid she had drunk. “Black!? Are you a crazy woman?”

Fareeha shrugged, “It honestly doesn’t bother me too much. Either way, I drink more tea than I do coffee normally.”

Angela brought the cup to her lips, basking in the warmth brought with each and every sip. Her senses were slowly returning to that of a normal, functioning human adult. She leant back into her chair, savoring the one thing she could not live without.

“So, I suppose we should start then, no?”

Fareeha was a little disappointed they weren’t able to continue any small talk, but nonetheless she unlatched her bag and pulled out a notebook and pen, ready to take notes on Angela’s dictation.

Angela spent the time going over what was taught in the previous lecture, however she was prone to going off on tangents, telling small anecdotes and stories about an interesting fact that she had come across while reading research papers or a scientific journal. Sometimes they wouldn’t even be half-related to the topic they were discussing, but Fareeha didn’t mind. It was clear to her that without the formal setting of a lecture hall, Angela diverged into her true self, someone who was passionate about their field of study and actually enjoyed talking about the material. She enjoyed it when Angela would get lost in her tales. Her hands would become very active, waving around as her voice rose and fell with the plot.

She had a hard time not smiling during these offshoots of the normal conversation. Angela caught her one time, though, asking “What’s so funny?” to which Fareeha immediately blushed and turned her head downwards, muttering a small “nothing”, allowing Angela to continue on.

This persisted for longer than either of them expected. The passage of time seemed to be irrelevant in both of their minds, because when Angela glanced down at her watch, she was surprised to find it was already 11:15.

“Good lord, have I really been going on like this for that long?” Angela asked with surprise, “I’m sorry to have kept you in here for so long. Usually other people come in at ten for office hours, but since nobody came I guess I sort-of got lost in it all. I apologize if I bored you, I know you only came in here to get caught up and all.” Angela rubbed her forearm.

Fareeha worried she had given off the impression that she was bored the entire time, when in reality it was quite the opposite. “Oh please, uh, Angela, don’t worry about it. I quite enjoyed it, the actual lesson was just a bonus” Fareeha said with heat creeping up her face.

Angela and Fareeha began to look at every aspect of the room but each other. The awkwardness - brought about by their attraction to each other whilst being simultaneously unaware of its reciprocation - was palpable.

Angela snuck a glance at Fareeha, her cheeks still tinged with lingering color. She didn’t know why, but she suddenly feeling like if she didn’t say something it would just continue on like this.

“Well, as much as I appreciated your morning coffee, I’m going to have to leave to go grab myself another cup. I can only function on one for so long.”

Angela met Fareeha’s eyes as she turned to look back up, and Fareeha gave a small nod in understanding. Something about the way Fareeha seemed almost sad that she had to leave awoke something in her. Angela didn’t realize she was saying anything until it was already escaping her mouth.

“That is”, Angela stammered out, “unless you want to come grab some with me?” Angela didn’t even have time to mentally reprimanded herself before Fareeha sat right up in her seat, unable to keep a face to ‘keep it cool’.

“YES!” Fareeha said a little too quickly. Her mind was still in overdrive from what appeared to be Angela asking her out to a date. She gave a small cough into her hand. “I mean, I’d love to, yes.”

Angela had an unmistakable aura of happiness about her, now that her roller coaster of emotions had settled. “Shall we, then?”

Fareeha nodded, and they both stood up and exited her office. Angela placed her keys into the lock and closed up, and they made their way down the hallway.

Fareeha was thinking about their initial conversation this morning, and couldn’t help but break out a smirk. “So what was so bad that you’re forcing yourself to wear that sweatshirt in this heat?”

Angela brought her hand up to her mouth, letting out a giggle that made Fareeha’s heart leap.

“Oh my god, Fareeha, it’s so bad. You know how I told you I had a rough morning? Well I woke up and grabbed the first things I could find, and it wasn’t until I got to my car that I saw how low-cut it was.” Angela couldn’t help but giggle again as she looked up to Fareeha, who was blushing from her thoughts brought about by her active imagination. “But, I was already so late, I didn’t want to go back inside to grab a new top, so instead I wore the sweatshirt that I luckily keep in the back of my car.” She turned her head with a wicked smirk. “Or maybe unluckily, eh?” She softly jabbed Fareeha in the arm with her elbow, wagging her eyebrows up and down. “It’d make for some nice payback.”

Fareeha’s face blazed a fiery red, quite obviously so to Angela, even with the backdrop of her dark mocha skin. She couldn’t help but groan in exasperation and embarrassment of having to replay that memory in her head, but also mentally noting that Angela was thinking about it too.

And she was, oh she was. Angela continued to walk alongside Fareeha, feeling smug about being able to put Fareeha into such a state for the second time.

She mentally high-fived her subconscious for starting all of this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smh now the chapter numbers don't align (•_•) 
> 
> The entire chapter can be found on my tumblr account, none of the splitting nonesense happened there.
> 
> http://junglejayps.tumblr.com/post/152451997126/instructors-dilemma-pt-4
> 
> Sorry again, I need to stop posting my stuff at 2-3am, because I don't catch mistakes like this aparently. Part 5 is coming quite soon.


	6. In Tandem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fareeha and Angela spend their afternoon in the campus cafe.

A gentle chime of a bell filled the air as Fareeha held the door open for Angela. The familiar aroma of ground beans and pastries sent a small shiver down Fareeha’s spine. Glancing around, Fareeha noticed the line was much shorter than it had been in the morning, the majority of the customers being professors and students who attended the lectures throughout the day. With one smooth motion, Fareeha pulled off her Aviator sunglasses and ran her fingers through her hair. She looked down to her professor, who was looking rather flustered, her cheeks reddened and mouth slightly agape. _Must be the heat getting to her, Fareeha thought to herself_. They both stepped up to the register, and the familiar tuft of short brown hair came racing from the backroom to the register.

“Fareeha! Back again! Hello!” Lena gasped, unable to catch her breath. The two eyed Lena skeptically; Angela’s lips turned up into a sly grin, while Fareeha - not being one for awkward situations - let out a small stutter.

“Ah.. Lena.. You have something… here.” She motioned to her own neck, attempting to communicate the message without having to speak the words for herself.

Lena pulled up her phone and looked at the screen, and immediately turned beet red, letting out a small squeak before running to the sink to wash off the ruby red lipstick prints that marked her neck and lower jaw. She returned to the register, but did not have the guts to look either of the two in the eye.

Fareeha propped her elbow up on the counter-top, “So who’s the lucky lady?”

Lena cautiously looked backed towards the backroom doorway to check for any eavesdroppers. Satisfied that nobody was trying to listen in, she leaned back over the counter. “Her name’s Emily. We’ve only been going out for a couple weeks, but I really like her. So please don’t embarrass me in front of her, Fareeha.”

“Oh please Lena, we both know you don’t need me to do that,” Fareeha replied, not even trying to fight down the grin spreading across her face.

Lena folded her arms across her chest with a harrumph. “So Amari, looks like I could ask you the same thing,” she gave a small nod in the direction of Angela, who suddenly was very interested in her shoes.

“Lena, this would be Angela.” Fareeha rubbed the back of her neck with her hand, before gesturing it to the woman beside her. “Angela, this is Lena.” Fareeha motioned back across the counter.

“Quite the pleasure, love.” Lena outstretched her hand towards Angela.

“Likewise.” Angela took Lena’s hand in her own.

Lena grabbed a cup and flipped it right-side up and popped open the sharpie she had been carrying above her ear. “I know what you want,” she pointed the sharpie in Fareeha’s direction, “but what can I get you, Angela?”

Angela placed her order. They both waited for their drinks before finding somewhere to sit.

“Care to sit outside?” Fareeha turned to Angela. “To stay away from… _prying eyes and ears_ ,” she said with a subtle flicked of the eyes in the direction of Lena.

Angela quickly glanced behind her towards the counter, and back again to the outside patio. She looked around and saw that a few of the tables placed on the deck had umbrellas sticking up through the centers. She slowly nodded back in response.

They exited the coffee shop, Angela reflexively brought her forearm in front of her face to cover at least some of her pale skin from the blazing sun. Fareeha quickly found a table and cranked the handle placed on the shaft of the umbrella, the branches unfurling as she twisted it further and further. Shade slowly crept across the table and seats, allowing the pair to find some respite from the midday sun.

Fareeha sat down across from Angela, who was already opening up the packets of sugar and creamer to liven up her iced coffee. Condensation was already beginning to form on the cup, the beads of moisture dripping down to the table below. Angela swiped some of droplets and ran them across her forehead before turning over the cuffs of her sweatshirt over themselves, rolling the sleeves up to her elbow. With one motion she crossed her legs, her left foot dangling to the side, bobbing up and down to the slow rhythm of the music playing over the speakers. She looked around the patio with a content smile. A small group of hummingbirds hovered about a feeder, and lumbering bumblebees flew this way and that, clumsily looking for another bright patch of flowers to pollinate.

Fareeha opened the lid to her coffee and softly blew, causing small ripples to flow across the surface and bounce against the walls and back in. When she closed the lid and looked back up, she saw Angela glancing around, enthralled by the nature around her. With a small sigh, she rested her cheek against her palm, getting lost in in the sea of blonde held in a high ponytail, only rivaled by the two spheres of impossible blue. A blue that would put the purest of sapphires to shame. A blue so dangerously captivating she would spend hours drifting in their majesty without a moment of thought given to the world about her.

“...reeha?” The blue changed shaped, Angela formed an inquisitive look.

Fareeha shook out of her trance, caught off guard by Angela’s apparent shift of attention back on her. A small heat crept on her face.

“I’m sorry, I... drifted off there for a moment. What did you say?”

Angela covered her mouth as a small giggle escaped her mouth. An eyebrow darted up her forehead, and a smirk followed suit. “I hope you are not day-dreaming like this during my lectures.”

“Of course not!” Fareeha burst out, “I always make sure to focus on you - I mean your lectures!” Hastily trying to correct herself only made the grin on Angela’s face grow wider. Fareeha felt a soft pressure slowly trailing up and down the side of her calf. It was not until she looked down did she realized a stray foot - Angela’s foot - had made its way across the table and started teasingly stroking Fareeha’s leg. As she brought her gaze back up, robbed of all ability to speak, Angela coolly replied, “You know, I wouldn’t mind if you did~”

A patron sitting at another table might think Fareeha to be mute with how many times Angela took away her ability to respond like a normal adult. Her sultry demeanor seemingly arose and dissipated in an instant, but each time Angela’s choice words would always leave the same lasting mark as previous. It didn’t help that Angela took the opportunity to pounce whenever she was given the opening, which with Fareeha, was quite often.

About a half hour later, they stood up from their seats and worked their way back into the cafe and towards the front entrance. Before exiting, Fareeha turned to the counter to give a small farewell nod. Lena replied with a waggle of her eyebrows and a *snip-snap* of her index and middle finger together. Fareeha rolled her eyes, giving a deadpanned look to the woman behind the register.

The pair walked out of the cafe and along the walkway, slowly making their way back to the Academic buildings where they would split ways. They went side by side, hands in their pockets. What was the protocol for something like this? Fareeha was sure Angela wouldn’t want to be seen holding hands with someone on campus, let alone a student in one of her classes. She was about to settle for just walking close when Angela suddenly looped her arm around Fareeha’s, her free hand resting on the bicep. With a surprised look, Fareeha looked down.

“Are… are you sure? I’m not complaining but..” Fareeha asked hesitantly.

“Yes I am sure, you worry too much, Fareeha.”

They advanced up the set of staircases. By this time, students had occupied much of the lawn on the university quad. A trio played Frisbee, hastily tossing the disk to each one another, the passersby just beyond eying the trajectory of the Frisbee cautiously. On the other side of the walkway a small group of people practiced their daily yoga routine, mimicking the movements and poses of a woman set out in front. Some students were content to just spread out a blanket and lie down, basking in the glow of the afternoon sun.

As the pair reached the end of the quad, they slowed their pace. Just as Fareeha was about to say her goodbyes and split, she was interrupted by a loud booming voicing coming from her right.

“Fareeha! How are you my friend?”

With a swift movement Fareeha shook Angela from her grasp, her body arching upright so that her back was stiff as a board. They both slowly turned to face the voice that had called out to them.

“Ah, Reinhardt, hello,” Fareeha replied with uncertainty.

The man before Angela was gargantuan, much taller than Fareeha, let alone herself. The muscles strained against the fabric of the button down shirt he wore tucked into his charcoal gray suit pants. The coat was flung over his shoulder, held by his fingers. _Fingers probably as thick as my forearm_ , she thought to herself. But another worrying thought crossed her mind. _What if he is a professor here? He certainly looks the type._

“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend there?” He beamed. Angela could have sworn she saw a flock of birds scatter out of a nearby tree at the noise.

Fareeha started stammering as she worked at a response. _Anything I say will surely not be kept between this circle._ She knew of Reinhardt’s tendencies to let secrets slip from his running mouth.

Fareeha put her hand on Angela’s back, and made motions for the second time that day. “This would be Angela…” she chose her next words very carefully, “we know each other from… class.”

Reinhardt eyed Fareeha suspiciously, and then set her eyes on Angela, who nearly buckled under the gaze of the seven foot behemoth. Apparently satisfied with the answer, Reinhardt resumed the conversation. “It is quite a pleasure to meet you, Angela,” he said, coming over to give a friendly pat to her shoulder, which nearly sent her toppling to the ground.

“Well,” Reinhardt shifted his focus back onto Fareeha, “I am off to see your mother, Fareeha. I will tell her I saw you!”

Before Fareeha even had a chance to reply, Reinhardt set off, bounding away along the sidewalk, parting the oncoming students like the red sea.

A feeling akin to despair welled in the pit of Angela’s stomach. _And he is friends with Ana_.

They stood in silence for a few moments before Fareeha turned to face Angela, who followed suit.

“I know what you’re probably thinking. I’m worried too.”

Angela looked away, “I could get fired for this, Fareeha. I’m a nobody who’s easily replaced. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

Fareeha paused for a moment, “I know.”

“Call me?” Angela nervously rubbed her forearm, “if you hear anything?”

“I don’t have your number, though.”

Angela gave a small chuckle, and motioned for Fareeha’s phone. She quickly entered her digits and returned it back to its owner.

“Well I need to get back and prepare for my next class..”

Fareeha nodded her head in understanding. Just as Angela was about to turn and leave, Fareeha started, “Angela, if my mother finds out about this, _about us_ , I won’t let her do anything to you.”

Angela weakly smiled, and set off to her office.

_I hope that is true._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, just want to first say I’m terribly sorry this took so long to write. I had the first half of this chapter written a month ago, but due to the end of the semester approaching I had no time to continue it. Every time I tried to return to it after that, I just kind-of sat and couldn’t think of anything to write. Good news is, I already have a general idea of what the events will be, so you shouldn’t have to wait too long for updates.
> 
> If you want status reports on what things will be coming when, you could check out my tumblr @junglejayps. I also share only the dankest of memes there so headsup 8)
> 
> IN ADDITION! I'm currently working on a pretty long fic, and I'm doing most of the work before I post the first chapter. It's a pretty personal story based on a few events in my life, so it's going to get pretty emotional throughout. I would very much like to get this right, and therefore will be taking a long time to complete it. With that being said, I'm currently looking for an editor to help me look over my work and help revise. If you are in any way interested, I humbly request that you message me on tumblr. To anyone thinking about it, you have my undying thanks.
> 
> \- Jayps.


	7. Back into it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so short, but there is more in store!
> 
> If I'm not updating fast enough, bother me at @junglejayps on tumblr, peer pressure works surprisingly well on me. I also post smaller fics that i don't upload on AO3

 

The rest of her day went by in a blur. The musings of her professors were nothing but background noise to her, the sounds waves filtered out, her head muddled with the storm of thoughts that preoccupied her mind. The fire alarm could have gone off and she would have barely noticed. It was not until she noticed the students in front of her leaving their seats did she realize the class had ended. The process repeated itself yet again in her following history course. To be fair, though, she wouldn’t have been able to pay attention anyways. She tried to like the class, she really did. Her professor was a kindly and stout older man, with a long braided beard that reached down to his waist. Being the history buff that she was, when Fareeha originally signed up for the class, _Nordic History of the 17th and 18th Centuries,_ she was excited to hear about the multitude of conflicts between the nations during the existence of several major powers in close proximity. What she got instead was 10 minutes of lecture which delved into heated rants about the Danish neighbor across the Kattegat.

 

She was in a sort of daze between Angela and the lecture about the thirteenth war in two centuries between Sweden and its southern neighbor when she was interrupted by a sudden vibration coming from her right pocket. Fareeha quickly lifted her hips up and fished her phone out, glancing at the awaiting lock-screen.

 

_Message from Aleks_

 

Sensing the purpose of the message, Fareeha rolled her eyes and swept her finger across and opened the messenger app.

 

Aleks: _We are all going to eat in the commons in a half hour, will you come with?_

 

Fareeha was surprised to see that Zarya hadn’t even mentioned anything about this morning, especially when she was always the first to poke -

 

_Message from Aleks_

Aleks: _And do not think we will not discuss Ms. Professor! ;)_

 

 _Aaaand there it is_ , Fareeha thought to herself, pinching the bridge of her nose with an exasperated sigh. She brought her other hand up to the phone to type out a response.

 

_Fine. I_ _’ll meet you guys there._

 

The next ten minutes of the class could not have gone by slower; Fareeha checked her watch compulsively, wishing that she could just advance time by adjusting the face’s dials. As her professor’s lesson finally came to an end, Fareeha made sure to be the first to stand up and prance down the steps. Sitting on the end of the row always made for a quick escape.

 

She dashed across campus, weaving and squeezing through the groups of students that flowed either way along the sidewalk. She entered the main campus building and was greeted by the sudden noise of hundreds of students clambering to the tables littered throughout, all looking to claim the valuable real estate to eat their meals. It took a few minutes of searching before Fareeha could spot the familiar tuft of neon pink hair, which radiated like a lighthouse peaking through the low fog of heads below.

 

“Hey, guys.” Fareeha said, as she shuffled by Jesse to sit on the far side of the modest table. Aleks, who took up so much room on her side that poor Mei was forced to sit at the corner, gave Fareeha a dead-panned look. “Oh, do not ‘hey guys’ us like nothing happened, Amari.”

 

Fareeha looked down at her watch, not 5 seconds had passed and they were already grilling her on the morning’s events. She had hoped that maybe it would have lasted a little longer, but Aleksandra was not the type to beat around the bush. “W-what?” Fareeha stammered out, in an attempt to delay the inevitable.

 

Jesse rolled his eyes and nudged Fareeha in the bicep with his elbow, “Oh you know exactly what she’s talking ‘bout Far.”

 

Fareeha let out an exasperated sigh, looking around the table to meet the eyes of three very attentive faces, all leaning closer and closer not not miss a single detail. “Fine,” she said with a huff, “after I visited her office we ended up going to the coffee shop together.”

 

The table erupted in cheer; Jesse immediately clapped his hand on Fareeha’s shoulder, Mei let out a squeal as her hands repeatedly clapped together, and Zarya donned the widest smile she’d seen her wear in months.

 

“Well done!” Aleks praised. “So Amari, did you get her to give you the A?” Aleks scanned the table to gauge reactions, to which Jesse groaned and Mei gave the most unamused face in return.

 

“Very funny, Zarya,” Fareeha dismissed with an eye roll, while taking out the meal she had prepared for lunch from her backpack. She hastily shoveled a heap of rice and chicken into her mouth before continuing. “Honestly, it was just _nice._ We didn’t really do much, it was mostly just us sitting and talking, both in her office and at the cafe.” Not that she minded, though. For years she performed the delicate balancing act of keeping her academics and athletics in equilibrium, making sure to spend time keeping in peak physical condition while also maintaining over a 3.5 GPA. But in recent months she has been slowly teetering further and further out of balance, the stress from her over-bearing mother doing nothing but accelerating the process. A little bit of normalcy helps to bring back a little stability.

 

“Did…” Mei interjected cautiously. “Did she think it was a date?”

 

Fareeha thought back to the coffee, the small giggles, the times she caught the blond stealing glances, the phone number, when she wandered her foot up and down the traverse of her leg. Fareeha couldn’t help the blush that crept up her cheeks, she could almost still feel that touch.

 

With a cough, she replied, “I’d certainly hope so, unless the phone number she gave me at the end was the Rejection Hotline.”

 

A hand was immediately brought to her back, nearly knocking the wind right out of her. “I knew ya had it in ya, Far!”

 

Jesse’s reaction was mirrored by Aleksandra and Mei. “I’m happy for you, Fareeha. I really am.” Mei smiled as she puffed her shoulders. “Did you ever talk about doing it again?” She added.

 

“Well we didn’t really talk about meeting up with each other outside of campus.” She noticed Mei deflating. “But she did mention that she wanted to do,” she waved her arms around in a circular manner, “ _this_ , again.” Mei perked right back up.

 

“So I’ll be going to to see her in her office again in a few days,” Fareeha concluded.

 

“Uh-oh, you better hope she does not _punish_ you for going around having an affair with a professor,” Aleks added with a sly grin.

 

“I swear,” Jesse said with a chuckle, “you are the dirtiest one of all of us, Aleks.”

 

“Oh, you have no idea, Jesse,” Mei added with an oh-too-innocent expression on her face.

 

They all finished their lunches as Jesse tried to calm down from the coughing fit he had after choking on his own drink.

 

“So, I’ll see you all tomorrow, then?” Fareeha asked as she collected her things from the table.

 

The group all mumbled in agreement and said their goodbyes. Aleks and Mei split off to return to their off-campus apartment, Jesse departed to go to his next class, and Fareeha decided it’d be best to return to her dorm room to relax for the rest of her day.

 

As she exited the double doors of the commons building, she pulled out her cell-phone to give Angela a quick text so she would know her number. As the screen illuminated, though, her stomach plummeted. A single notification was present on the lock screen.

 

_Missed call from Ana Amari._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry this was out so late (and that it’s so short for that matter), I don’t really have an excuse, I just never really felt motivated to write anything. But now that the semester’s returned, I have alot more downtime on campus to just plop down and start writing.
> 
> The good news is, I have another multi-part story in the works. However, this time around I will start posting when I have the majority of it already written. This way, all of this funky business doesn’t happen again.


End file.
